Five North Central College women's track and field student-athletes have qualified for the 2008 NCAA Division III All-Academic Team, as selected by the United States Track and Cross Country Coaches Association.

To qualify for the All-Academic Team, student-athletes needed to have compiled a cumulative grade-point average of 3.25 and met the NCAA Division III Indoor or Outdoor automatic or provisional qualifying standard in their respective events. A total of 232 student-athletes from 84 NCAA Division III institutions met the requirements this season.

Representing North Central on this year's team are Lauren Brightmore (Oak Lawn, Ill./Oak Lawn), Michelle Criscione (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central), Carolyn Kalafut (Westmont, Ill./Westmont), Yvonne Palmer (Lincolnwood, Ill./Niles West), and Melissa Savino (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North).

Brightmore posted a provisional qualifying mark of 57.37 seconds outdoors in the 400-meter dash in the Gregory Invitational at North Central on May 16. She is majoring in sport management.

Criscione, an elementary education major, qualified for the indoor national championships in the high jump, clearing 5 feet, 5 1/4 inches at the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Indoor Championships Mar. 1 to win the CCIW title and break the North Central freshman record in the event. She also won the CCIW Outdoor Championship in the high jump.

Kalafut, who is majoring in psychology, was a national championships qualifier and the CCIW champion indoors in the pole vault, with a season-best clearance of 12'0 1/2" coming Feb. 2 at the University of Chicago Duals. She provisionally qualified for the Division III Outdoor Championships with a mark of 12'0" at the North Central Old Fashioned Track Meet on Apr. 22.

Palmer provisionally qualified for the indoor nationals in the pole vault, clearing 11'6 1/2" at the Purdue University Boilermaker Invitational on Feb. 23. She is majoring in biology.

Savino, meanwhile, recorded provisional qualifying marks both indoors and outdoors in hurdling events, clocking a time of 8.51 seconds in the 55-meter hurdles Mar. 1 at the CCIW Indoor Championships and a time of 14.79 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles at the CCIW Outdoor Championships on May 3. She is an elementary education major.

North Central was also one of 92 Division III squads to earn All-Academic status as a team, marking the second straight year that the Cardinals have done so. Teams needed to carry a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.00 to qualify for nomination.

For a complete list of All-Academic individuals and teams, visit ustfccca.cstv.com.